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TS&P casebook - Mr X

Mr X was a young soldier whose potentially successful Army career was destroyed at the age of 25 by an accident which occurred during a peace time training exercise in August 2000. The most significant injury suffered was a fracture dislocation of the left hip complicated by injury to the sciatic nerve. He then went on to suffer avascular necrosis (in effect death of the bone) of the head of the femur. At the very young age of 26 he needed to have a left total hip replacement. Mr X was a very keen and very skilled sportsman and his social life revolved around sport. The injury meant that he had not only lost his career, but also that he could no longer pursue his sporting activities. He had also lost the comradeship and social contacts both of the Army and of the sporting sphere. He was a man of immense courage and determination who received glowing reports from the Army. Although he made every possible effort to resume his Army career, he could not do so. When TS&P first met Mr X in 2002, he was very depressed. He was also in considerable pain and very disabled. He was frustrated at his inability to progress his treatment under the NHS. In fact the pain was due to deep-seated infection which was causing loosening of the components of the hip joint. The Ministry of Defence had admitted liability for the accident and TS&P were able to obtain substantial interim payments for Mr X. TS&P arranged his introduction to a world famous Orthopaedic Surgeon who specialises in hip revisions. With the interim payment he was able to meet the cost of treatment. A new hip joint was inserted in August 2003. This improved his situation, although he remained physically restricted. In the meantime, Mr X had been doing a higher education course with a view to starting a three year degree course in physiotherapy having decided that this would be his new career. In early 2005, TS&P settled his claim for just under £700,000. The award included compensation for loss of his congenial employment. TS&P had prepared detailed forecasts of his likely career progression through the Army until retirement from the Forces at the age of 41. We had also mapped out his likely career path in civilian life thereafter. By way of comparison, detailed projections had to be made of his likely career path as a Physiotherapist. It was necessary to calculate the lifetime loss of earnings and the likely loss of pension as a result of the enforced change of career. Mr X was likely to face a number of further hip replacements during the rest of his lifetime. He was always going to suffer a degree of physical impairment. There were significant claims for the future costs of assistance with DIY and gardening as well as domestic assistance, particularly in the periods leading up to and after each of the future operations. As a result of his ongoing disability and the need for further surgery, Mr X had a potential disadvantage on the labour market and £50,000 was claimed by way of a [Smith -v- Manchester] award for this. He had found the transition from active service life to studying not an easy one and was fearful that he would fail his first year exams.

However, we were delighted to hear soon after his settlement that he had in fact passed his exams and we have no doubt that he will now have a successful career as a Physiotherapist.

For further enquiries please contact Jonathan Clement (view full profile) on 01892 701264 or email jclement@ts-p.co.uk.

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